Category: MIL-OSI

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

The Drainage Services Department (DSD) today (August 8) gazetted a notice to invite tenders for the contract for Relocation of Sha Tin Sewage Treatment Works to Caverns – Civil Works for Sewage Treatment Facilities and Associated Works (Contract No. DC/2025/07). The closing time for the tender is noon on October 3.

The works include: 

• construction of the civil structures for sewage and sludge treatment facilities and the associated utilities and roadworks of the Sha Tin Cavern Sewage Treatment Works;
• construction of two maintenance workshop buildings;
• construction and installation of fire services, building services installations and related electrical and mechanical facilities in ancillary buildings; and
• other related works.

The works are scheduled to commence in December 2025 and will take about 58 months to complete.

The DSD has commissioned AECOM Asia Company Limited to design and supervise the works. Interested contractors can download the tender forms and other particulars from the e-Tendering System (e-TS). Tenderers must submit their tenders in electronic format via the e-TS.
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Details of the tender notice are available on the DSD website (www.dsd.gov.hk/EN/Tender_Notices/Current_Tenders/index.html). For enquiries, please contact AECOM Asia Company Limited during office hours (tel: 3922 9000; fax: 3922 9797; email address: desmond.ng@aecom.com).
 

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region – 4

The Social Welfare Department (SWD) stated today (August 7) that it noted further arrests made by the Police in recent days in connection with the fraud cases referred by the SWD involving Traffic Accident Victims Assistance (TAVA). The SWD will continue to fully assist the Police’s investigation to combat the crimes concerned and ensure the proper use of public resources.

The SWD has made multiple referrals to the Police since March 2024 on TAVA applications suspected of false medical certificate submissions. According to the records of the Police, up to June 25, 2025, a total of 353 persons were arrested. Upon thorough investigation, the Police have further arrested eight more persons suspected of committing fraud in recent days.

The SWD has enhanced the TAVA Scheme and implemented new measures since June 28, 2025, including (1) merging the Injury Grant and Interim Maintenance Grant of the TAVA Scheme into the Compassionate Grant (CG) which is up to a maximum of 60 days of sick leave; (2) requiring an applicant to obtain certification from a registered medical practitioner (including a registered Chinese medicine practitioner) to prove that his/her injury requires hospitalisation for no less than seven days or sick leave for at least seven days; and (3) setting a ceiling on the number of CG applications submitted by the same applicant to once within two years.

In parallel with closely monitoring the implementation of the new measures, the SWD will continue to verify every TAVA application in a stringent manner. If fraudulence or other criminal elements are suspected, the SWD will refer the case to the Police for investigation to combat illegal behaviour.

It is a criminal offence to provide false information to obtain TAVA payments. Offenders may be prosecuted under the Theft Ordinance (Cap. 210) and be liable on conviction to imprisonment for a maximum of 14 years.

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region – 4

    The Immigration Department (ImmD) mounted an anti-illegal worker operation recently. During the operation, 14 persons were arrested, namely 12 suspected illegal workers and two employers.
 
    During follow-up investigations of overstayers in Hong Kong earlier, the ImmD investigators suspected that these overstayers were engaged in illegal work during their stay in Hong Kong. After an in-depth investigation and intelligence analysis, the ImmD conducted an enforcement operation yesterday (August 6), raiding a logistics warehouse located in Yuen Long District. Together with the previously arrested overstayers, a total of 12 suspected illegal workers and two employers were arrested. The arrested illegal workers comprised eight men and four women, aged 24 to 53. They were all suspected of engaging in various logistics tasks, including handling, packaging, and unloading goods at the logistics warehouse. Among them, three men were also suspected of being in possession of forged Hong Kong identity cards, while one woman was suspected of possessing an identity card related to another person. Two men, aged 46 and 50, were Hong Kong residents suspected of employing the illegal workers and were also arrested. During the operation, attendance records, payroll records, a laptop, and packaging tools of the illegal workers were also seized. The ImmD will lay charges against the arrested illegal workers while the cases involving the employers remain under investigation. The ImmD does not rule out the possibility of further arrests.

     An ImmD spokesman said, “Any person who contravenes a condition of stay in force in respect of him or her shall be guilty of an offence. Also, visitors are not allowed to take employment in Hong Kong, whether paid or unpaid, without the permission of the Director of Immigration. Offenders are liable to prosecution and upon conviction face a maximum fine of $50,000 and up to two years’ imprisonment. Aiders and abettors are also liable to prosecution and penalties.”
 
     The spokesman warned, “As stipulated in section 38AA of the Immigration Ordinance, an illegal immigrant, a person who is the subject of a removal order or a deportation order, an overstayer or a person who was refused permission to land is prohibited from taking any employment, whether paid or unpaid, or establishing or joining any business. Offenders are liable upon conviction to a maximum fine of $50,000 and up to three years’ imprisonment. As stipulated in section 20(1)(a) of the Immigration Ordinance, the Chief Executive may make a deportation order against an immigrant, prohibiting the immigrant from being in Hong Kong at any time thereafter if the immigrant has been found guilty in Hong Kong of an offence punishable by imprisonment for not less than two years. Under the prevailing laws, it is an offence to use or possess a forged Hong Kong identity card or a Hong Kong identity card related to another person. Offenders are liable to prosecution and upon conviction face a maximum fine of $100,000 and up to 10 years’ imprisonment.”
 
     The spokesman emphasised that it is a serious offence to employ people who are not lawfully employable. Under the Immigration Ordinance, the maximum penalty for an employer employing a person who is not lawfully employable, i.e. an illegal immigrant, a person who is the subject of a removal order or a deportation order, an overstayer or a person who was refused permission to land, has been significantly increased from a fine of $350,000 and three years’ imprisonment to a fine of $500,000 and 10 years’ imprisonment to reflect the gravity of such offences. The director, manager, secretary, partner, etc, of the company concerned may also bear criminal liability. The High Court has laid down sentencing guidelines that the employer of an illegal worker should be given an immediate custodial sentence.
 
     According to the court sentencing, employers must take all practicable steps to determine whether a person is lawfully employable prior to employment. Apart from inspecting a prospective employee’s identity card, the employer has the explicit duty to make enquiries regarding the person and ensure that the answers would not cast any reasonable doubt concerning the lawful employability of the person. The court will not accept failure to do so as a defence in proceedings. It is also an offence if an employer fails to inspect the job seeker’s valid travel document if the job seeker does not have a Hong Kong permanent identity card. Offenders are liable upon conviction to a maximum fine of $150,000 and to imprisonment for one year. In that connection, the spokesman reminded all employers not to defy the law by employing illegal workers. The ImmD will continue to take resolute enforcement action to combat such offences.
 
      Under the existing mechanism, the ImmD will, as a standard procedure, conduct an initial screening of vulnerable persons, including illegal workers, illegal immigrants, sex workers and foreign domestic helpers, who are arrested during any operation with a view to ascertaining whether they are trafficking in persons (TIP) victims. When any TIP indicator is revealed in the initial screening, the ImmD officers will conduct a full debriefing and identification by using a standardised checklist to ascertain the presence of TIP elements, such as threats and coercion in the recruitment phase and the nature of exploitation. Identified TIP victims will be provided with various forms of support and assistance, including urgent intervention, medical services, counselling, shelter or temporary accommodation and other supporting services. The ImmD calls on TIP victims to report crimes to the relevant departments immediately.

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region – 4

     Regarding a report released by the Office of the Ombudsman today (August 7) on its direct investigation into “Housing Department’s Management of Public Housing Estates: Air-conditioner Dripping”, the Housing Department (HD) expressed appreciation to the Ombudsman for recognising the pro-active attitude and initiative of the Housing Authority/HD in implementing enhancement measures in managing water dripping from air-conditioners in public housing estates to continuously improve the effectiveness of estate management.
 
     The HD has implemented multiple measures to address the issue of water dripping from air-conditioners in public housing estates. These include the launching of the Installation Programme of Condensation Drain-pipe for Air-conditioners in 2006 to put in place condensation drain pipes in public rental housing (PRH) flats to facilitate the discharge of condensation water from air-conditioners. Since 2008, water dripping from air-conditioners has been included in the Marking Scheme for Estate Management Enforcement in Public Housing Estates (Marking Scheme), with follow-up actions handled through daily patrols and inspections by special operation teams. In addition, the HD adopts information technology, including the trial use of the “Mobile Application System for Daily Patrol” which enables frontline security personnel and building supervisors to report cases of water dripping from air-conditioners in real time for swift follow-up actions. The HD is also actively exploring the use of professional technological equipment to assist in identifying the source of water dripping. 
 
     The number of complaints regarding water dripping from air-conditioners received by the HD has significantly decreased by 93 per cent, from approximately 18 900 cases in 2005 to an average of about 1 300 cases per year from 2022 to 2024, accounting for 0.16 per cent of about 800 000 PRH households and clearly reflecting that the effectiveness of the multiple measures implemented by the HD in the handling of cases for water dripping from air-conditioners.
 
     The HD has further implemented enhanced measures in December 2024 by giving five days for concerned households to rectify any water dripping problem from their air-conditioners, failing which, action would be taken immediately under the Marking Scheme. Meanwhile, enforcement efficiency has been improved by allowing security supervisors in all public housing estates to issue “Notification Slips” to offending households on the spot. The HD will continue to strengthen staff training and supervision of outsourced property management companies.
 
     Furthermore, the HD will continue to strengthen publicity and education for PRH households through various channels, reminding residents to regularly maintain and repair air-conditioners. Since households sometimes may not be aware of water dripping from their air-conditioners, the HD encourages affected individuals to provide information and work together to identify the source of water dripping.
 
     “We would like to thank the Ombudsman for the affirmation and recognition of our efforts, and appreciate its valuable views on the current mechanisms and measures. We accept the relevant recommendations and will continue to streamline our workflow, thereby ensuring such cases can be detected and addressed promptly,” an HD spokesman said.